Chelsea’s swoop for defender Kalidou Koulibaly has been described as a ‘beautiful deal’, but for Napoli, not the Blues.
The centre-back moved to Stamford Bridge in a £34.2m deal in July, with the Blues spending big to replace Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen.
It brought an end to an eight-year spell with the Italian side, who he had joined from Genk in 2014 and established himself as one of the best defenders in Europe.
He had been linked with a move to the Premier League on several occasions but never made the switch, with Napoli consistently turning down bids and interest.
It was Chelsea who ultimately convinced them to sell, and it’s so far worked out well for the Italian side, who quickly replaced Koulibaly with Kim min-Jae and recorded a huge profit.
He’s proven to be a huge hit since his arrival, so much so he’s already been linked with a big money move to the Premier League, making the decision to sell Koulibaly look even better.
Journalist Paolo Bargiggia certainly feels it was a good choice, labelling the whole operation as a ‘beautiful deal’.
“Napoli is a model to follow. In the summer it managed to close two beautiful outgoing deals,” Area Napoli report him saying.
“In fact, the Campania club sold Kalidou Koulibaly and Fabian Ruiz. For the Senegalese, Chelsea invested a sum of forty million euros plus another five million in bonuses. That does not seem little to me.
“When Napoli sold their players, many were talking about downsizing. Players like Lorenzo Insigne, for example, seemed irreplaceable.
“Instead, in Luciano Spalletti’s court came the Georgian Kvaratskhelia, an attacker who is doing excellent things. Think also of Kim, who is having an excellent season. Good players, if there is the necessary competence, can be found.”
